Premier League Football - Weekend Betting Preview

Premier League football is back after the international break and to ease punters back into the swing of things bwin.com has put together a betting preview of all of the top-flight matches due to take place over the next few days. All odds quoted in the article were correct as of 10:00 on Friday, 9th September but are subject to change.

With no midweek European club games to disrupt the schedule, the fourth round of Premier League fixtures sees Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Tottenham and Liverpool all kick off at the traditional time of 15:00 on Saturday, with Manchester United taking on Bolton at 17:30.

However, despite competing for attention at the same time as their illustrious rivals, it is Arsenal who are likely to hog the limelight in their first game since being on the wrong end of an 8-2 drubbing at Old Trafford on 28th August.

The Gunners take on Swansea at the Emirates Stadium and are 33/100 favourites to win the match, with a draw priced at 15/4 and a win for the Welsh side at 33/4.

They might be without a win in the league so far this season, but Arsenal's short price reflects the fact the team which faces Swansea should be significantly stronger than the one which took on Manchester United.

New signings Per Mertesacker, Andre Santos, Chu-Young Park, Yossi Benayoun and Mikel Arteta are in contention to start, while Emmanuel Frimpong is back following suspension.

As such, a Swansea side yet to score in the Premier League look vulnerable to an Arsenal backlash.

Manchester City and Manchester United also look set for comfortable wins this weekend.

The goal-hungry Citizens take on Wigan at the Etihad Stadium and are short 4/25 favourites to claim all three points, with a draw at 4/25 and a Latics victory at 13/1. With 12 goals scored in three games so far, City look to have far too much firepower for Roberto Martinez's men to cope with.

Similarly, the Red Devils should have no problem seeing off Bolton at the Reebok given the Trotters have conceded three times in each of their last two matches.

With Wayne Rooney and Ashley Young in ruthless form in front of goal, United are justifiably 2/5 favourites for the win, with a draw at 33/10 and Bolton victory at 7/1.

While three points are less assured for Chelsea at odds of 13/20, recent history suggests they will ease past Sunderland with something to spare at the Stadium of Light.

The Blues have won nine of their last ten meetings with Sunderland and have scored at least three goals against the Black Cats in five of the last six games.

That said, those who think Sunderland can turn their season around can back Steve Bruce's men at 9/2 with a draw at 9/2.

Liverpool and Tottenham are also favourites for their away matches against Stoke and Wolves respectively.

However, these games look much tighter than those involving Man Utd, Man City, Chelsea and Arsenal and upsets could well be on the cards.

Liverpool are 6/5 to win at the Britannia, with a Stoke success priced at 23/10 and a draw at 11/5.

The draw looks particularly tempting at these odds, with Liverpool below par on the road last season and without a win in the Potteries since Stoke's promotion to the Premier League in 2008.

Meanwhile, Wolves' impressive start to the season means Spurs are not assured of picking up their first points of the season.

Mick McCarthy's men have two wins and a draw from their opening three games while Spurs have shipped eight goals in their first two fixtures to leave them bottom of the league.

Odds of 9/5 on a Wolves win could therefore be worth a punt, with a draw at 47/20 and a Spurs victory at 7/5.

Saturday's final game sees Everton (21/20) take on Aston Villa (53/20) at Goodison Park.

This one promises to be a tight encounter, with neither side averaging more than one goal scored a game.

As such, a draw could be the best bet (11/5) in bwin's 3Way results market.

On Sunday, Norwich are 29/20 favourites to pick up their first win of the season against West Brom, with a win for the Baggies at 9/5 and a draw at 9/4.

Roy Hodgson's men look attractively priced given the absence of John Ruddy in the Norwich goal through suspension, although the fact Norwich managed to score at Stamford Bridge before the international break suggests a draw is the most attractive option.

Fulham are far more likely to pick up a home win (13/20) against struggling Blackburn (19/4), with even a draw (12/5) looking to be beyond Steve Kean's side given their poor away record last season.

Finally, all eyes will be on Joey Barton on Monday as he dons a QPR shirt for the first time.

Almost inevitably, he will be making his debut against his former side Newcastle and backing a Barton-inspired Rangers to pick up all three points looks a good bet at 7/5.